Self Medication, Wildlife Style: How Birds and Other Creatures Use Medicinal Plants

“Not all pharmacists are human.” So begins a 1993 review article on the use of medicinal plants by animals. Reading on, we learn that pharmacists can be chimpanzees, Kodiak bears, starlings and grackles. As we learn more about how animals use plants to prevent and treat ailments, this list has only continued to grow. It now even includes caterpillars. Self medication defined: When a substance is deliberately sought out that prevents or cures a condition and its use results in increased survival.